The switch is part of an electrical part that has an essential job: to stop the flow of electricity in a circuit.
This thing is made up of two metal blades that are attached to a circuit. Later, when the position is on, the two blades will be connected, and when the position is off, they will be apart.
People use switches all the time, especially to turn the lights in their homes or rooms on and off. But who would have thought a switch could come in different types and shapes based on what it does?
In general, there are two kinds of switches: those that are mechanical and those that are electronic. An automatic switch must be turned on by touching, pressing, moving, or letting go of the contacts.
The electronic switch, on the other hand, can be turned on and off without touching it. A semiconductor is what makes this switch work.
Mechanical Switch
1. Single Pole Single Throw (SPST)
Single Pole A single-throw switch also called a single switch, has one input and output contact. One of the ways these switch works is that the (ON) position turns the load on or off (OFF).
This switch is often used in homes to turn on one light, a fan, a mixer, and so on.
2. Single Pole Double Throw (SPDT)
Single Pole Double Throw also called a “double switch,” is a type of switch with three terminals. One terminal is the input contact, and the other two are the output contacts. In other words, the SPDT switch has one position that is “off” and two positions that are “on.”
This switch has an inside circuit connecting the input to either of the two outputs. Normally closed contacts are the ones that are connected to the input, and typically open contacts are the ones that will be connected when the ON switch is turned on.
Many people use this switch to turn on or off two lights.
3. Push Button
The push button switch is easy to use. To turn on or turn off an electric current, you must press a button. When you let go of the button, the switch button will go back to its normal position.
This switch has a spring-loaded mechanism that works in two ways: when it is pressed and when it is let go.
This switch is also made up of fixed or fixed and moving contacts connected in series with the circuit to be turned on even though the moving contact is connected to the push button (push).
4. Toggle Switch
A toggle switch is a switch with a lever that you move by hand. It’s pretty tiny, and most of the time, it’s used as a light switch or an electronic device.
There are many different sizes, grades, and models of toggle switches on the market, so you can find one that fits your needs. When the lever on a toggle switch is down, it usually means that the switch is closed or ON.
5. Selector Switch
Select switches have more than one terminal pole and are usually used to set up more than one connection. This switch has more than one moving contact and more than one fixed contact.
In everyday life, select switches change the speed of fans, the temperature in ovens, the settings on electrical panels, and so on.
6. Limit Switch
The limiting switch does the same thing as a switch in general, which is to connect and disconnect the electric current. However, this switch doesn’t work by touching it with your hand; it works when something else touches it.
This switch can be found on cabinet light switches, car door sensors, refrigerator doors, float sensors, and many other places.
Electronic Switch
Please keep in mind that semiconductors control most of the equipment that uses electronic switches, such as HVAC equipment and motor drives. There are:
1. Bipolar Transistor
When the transistor blocks current in the OFF state, it works in the cut-off mode. It works in saturation mode when it is in the ON state. In switch applications, the active area of the transistor is not used.
In this case, since the transistor is also passed by electric current, it can be used as a switch to stop the flow of electricity.
2. Power Diode
A diode can be used as a switch between low and high impedance states. Semiconductors like silicon and germanium are used to make diodes.
Silicon is often used in power diodes so that the device can work with higher currents and higher junction temperatures.
Power diodes are made by putting together materials that are both p-type and n-type semiconductors to make a PN junction. The two ends of a power diode are called the anode and the cathode.
When the anode is made positive about the cathode, and a voltage higher than the threshold level is applied, the PN junction works as an ON switch.
And when the cathode terminal is put in a positive position concerning the anode, the PN junction will be reverse biased and stop the current flow like an OFF switch.
Those are some of the different kinds of switches you can buy. Make sure to choose a scalar that fits your application and needs.